Hypersonic missile booster rocket fails to ignite in test
Tuesday, 03 August 2021 10:49In a test of a hypersonic booster rocket, a test rocket was successfully released from a B-52H bomber but failed to ignite, the U.S. Air Force said this week. The test of the rocket propelling the AGM-183A Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon was its second, and occurred on Wednesday at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. An Air Force statement on Thursday said that the booster test roc
British military launches its own Space Command with official opening
Tuesday, 03 August 2021 10:49Britain established its Space Command on Friday in a ceremonial opening, with responsibilities split between three specific groups to form a joint space command, Britain's Ministry of Defense announced on Friday. The British military budget includes $1.95 billion, over 10 years, for space capabilities, part of a defense budget increase of $33.34 billion in the next four years. Of
The truth about space traffic management
Tuesday, 03 August 2021 10:49Those familiar with air traffic management architectures understand the constraints of aircraft flying in the atmosphere, vehicle dynamics and command and control techniques. Unfortunately, space traffic has many more degrees of freedom and much less control capability. Add to this the completely uncontrolled nature of space debris and the reality that most debris objects cannot be tracked and m
Next batch of OneWeb satellites set to launch August 20
Tuesday, 03 August 2021 10:49Russia will launch the next batch of OneWeb satellites from the Baikonur cosmodrome on August 20, Dmitry Rogozin, the director general of state space corporation Roscosmos, confirmed on Saturday. The launch was originally set for August 5, but was postponed due to some of the satellites having faulty parts. Earlier in the month, a space industry source told Sputnik that the launch was resc
AWS agrees deal to expand Greece’s space industry with the cloud
Monday, 02 August 2021 19:11Amazon Web Services is partnering with Greece’s government on economic and technology initiatives that aim to turn the country into a regional space hub.
NASA study highlights importance of surface shadows in moon water puzzle
Monday, 02 August 2021 16:29The shadows cast by the roughness of the Moon's surface create small cold spots for water ice to accumulate even during the harsh lunar daytime.
Scientists are confident that water ice can be found at the Moon's poles inside permanently shadowed craters – in other words, craters that never receive sunlight.
Military communications payloads could hitchhike on future GPS satellites
Monday, 02 August 2021 15:47The next generation of Global Positioning System satellites could host additional payloads to provide communications services.
First additively-manufacture thermal protection shield is going to space
Monday, 02 August 2021 14:00A research team at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have 3D printed a thermal protection shield, or TPS, for a capsule that will launch with the Cygnus cargo spacecraft as part of the supply mission to the International Space Station. The launch will mark the first time an additively manufactured TPS has been sent to space.
Scientists worked with NASA to develop materials designed to withstand extreme temperatures encountered when objects reenter the atmosphere. The TPS protects a basketball-sized capsule that was developed by the University of Kentucky as a testbed for entry system technologies.
Smoke billows from fires in Turkey
Monday, 02 August 2021 13:43Parikh named executive secretary of National Space Council
Monday, 02 August 2021 13:00The White House has named a former director of space policy at the National Security Council as the new executive secretary of the National Space Council.
Former NASA official joins Nanoracks to lead commercial space station work
Monday, 02 August 2021 12:00Commercial space services company Nanoracks has hired a former NASA official most recently involved with planning for the Artemis program to lead its efforts to develop commercial space stations.
Chinese space firm launches and lands small test rocket
Monday, 02 August 2021 09:24Chinese private launch company Deep Blue Aerospace carried out a first low-altitude vertical takeoff, vertical land test late July.
ESA gets ready for double Venus flyby
Monday, 02 August 2021 09:00Solar Orbiter and BepiColombo are set to make space history with two Venus flybys just 33 hours apart on 9 and 10 August.
Science in motion for ExoMars twin rover
Monday, 02 August 2021 08:59The first science tests for the ExoMars rover replica kicked off after several weeks of driving tests around the Mars Terrain Simulator at the ALTEC premises in Turin, Italy.
Accounting for Earth’s water cycle
Monday, 02 August 2021 06:30The amount of water on Earth is finite. Sustaining life, this precious resource has been circulating between Earth’s surface and atmosphere for over four billion years, and changing between a liquid, a solid and a gas along the way. Although the total amount of water within the cycle remains constant, the way it is split between its various reservoirs changes continually. With the climate crisis leading to more extreme droughts and floods, the availability of enough freshwater where we need it is a growing concern. How can we be sure that we are using our water resources sustainably?